Using the voice I have to speak up

Consistency

Not too long ago, I remember some of my friends picking up on and repeating a particular line of the media. It was a line that said the Bush administration, and particularly vice president Cheney, was trying to grab too much power for the executive branch of government. I know that my friends are consistent. I know they are intelligent and want to find the truth. So I am sure they are equally concerned about the Obama administration’s growing number of “czars.” There are nearly 40 of them, most of them unappointed by the Senate, and thus there is little or no congressional oversight of what they do. They have about as much power as Obama’s own cabinet, who are approved and overseen by congress. This would definitely fit the description of a “power grab.“ It is very novel and it should be very alarming.

The president has also attempted to take over the running of the national census, demanding that the census bureau report back to the white house before making its data public. This is data that will drastically affect public policy and political power among other things, and the importance of its accuracy cannot be overstated. I’ve never heard of an administration doing this.

This, too, I’m sure is troubling to my friends.

Or could it be that my friends are unaware of these happenings? If so, I would encourage them to check out these and other things not covered by the media for themselves. When they find the truth, I would then ask them to ask questions like, “Why am I not reading these things in the newspaper? Or seeing them on television?” At that point, I am confident they will begin to see not only a strong bias in the news media, but also their power to shape public opinion.